


Kryptonian Atom

by spiderwolf94



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), DCU, Superman - All Media Types, The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: AU, Bisexual Ray Palmer, Canon, F/M, Kryptonian Ray Palmer, M/M, Ray Palmer is Atom, Ray Palmer is Superman, Smallville Easter Eggs, au-ish, coldatom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-06-15 23:47:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15424329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiderwolf94/pseuds/spiderwolf94
Summary: Ray has always been different form others. He's a genius with a high IQ and three (or four) PhD's. He made his own exoskeleton that shrinks. Oh, and he's the last surviving member of a dead alien race. Ray is supposed to be the Earth-1 Superman, but he's not using his powers or fighting with a cape. That needs to change.Bad with summaries and thinking of titles. Might change the title of story if I can think of something better. Hope you like this and leave reviews because they motivate me to update.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing a story on this site and my very first arrowverse story. I like Superman and Atom. And I liked the movie Superman Returns. Brandon Routh is amazing in everything he's in and he's awesome as both Clark Ken and Ray Palmer, so I'm writing an AU-ish story where he's both the Atom and he's a Kryptonian. I hope it turns out well and that you all like it. Enjoy!

When she was born, her parents named her Lara Lor-Van. The reason her name was Lara Lor-Van instead of Lara-Van was because if was Kryptonian custom for the daughter to be given her father's full name as a surname. Hence the reason her full name was Lara Lor-Van. It was also Kryptonian custom that when a female Kryptonian got married she dropped her surname and only went by her first name. When Lara Lor-Van married Jor-El, she dropped the "Lor-Van" part of her name and simply became "Lara".

Lara grew up to become a reputable scholar and librarian. Like all Kryptonian females, Lara was fated to marry a man deemed genetically fit to carry her offspring. The Master of the Gestation Chambers cross referenced her name within the Register of Citizens and selected a young man named Zon-Em as a suitable mate. Unfortunately disease swept the lands of most of Krypton, resulting in multiple deaths. This illness had been dubbed the "Green Plague" and ended the lives of thousands of Kryptonians, Zon-Em being one of the many victims, leaving Lara without an ideal suitor.

This turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Lara. With her fated dead she needed a new suitor. A scientist from the noble House of El was chosen as her new companion. His name was Jor-El. Marriage for Kryptonians was about procreative efficiency and couples rarely formed bonds of affection. Jor-El and Lara were different from other fated pairs because they actually fell in love with one another.

They could have had a happy, peaceful life together. When Lara found out she was pregnant, she was over joyed. They could not decide what to name the child if it turned out to be a girl, but they agreed that if the child was a boy his name would be Kal-El. In the Kryptonian language, "Kal" means "child" and "El" means "star". Hence, Kal-El means "star child". When they discovered they were having twin boys (not too much of a surprise since Jor-El was a twin) they agreed to name their second son Sul-El after Lara's brother, Sul-Van, who was murdered during an alien invasion.

They could have been a big, happy family, but it was not meant to be. Jor-El discovered that the Green Plague that had destroyed so many Kryptonians was but the foreshadowing of a much graver threat. The world's core had become extremely unstable and threatened to destroy the planet. Sadly, no one seemed to take this threat seriously. The only one who look Jor-El seriously was his (now former) friend, Dru-Zod, a general who lead a violent military coup and was sent to the Phantom Zone for it. With time running out for Krypton, Jor-El went to work to building a space pod for his sons to escape in.

And Lara prepared herself for the day she said goodbye to them.

* * *

Another earthquake stuck as the ground split open. The people of Krypton were running around in a panic as their world crumbled around them. The only ones not pointlessly panicking were Jor and Lara. Though there was no point really. They were prepared this whole time.

In Jor-El's lab, the scientist was placing the last of the crystals into the escape pod as his wife watched on, holding their sons. In Lara's right arm, she held Kal-El, dressed in blue footie pajamas and wrapped in a red blanket. In her left was Sul-El, dressed in black footie pajamas and wrapped in a blue blanket. Both boys had been sedated. Once inside the pod they would be in stasis and not wake up until they reached their destination.

"Are you ready?" asked Jor-El

'No,' thought Lara. No she wasn't ready to say goodbye forever to her children. They were only a year old. She wanted to watch them grow, see them smile, hold them close and never let go. But she knew that wasn't the case. "Yes," she eventually said.

"You know this is the only way," Jor-El reminded her softly. He did not like this any more than she did. "If they remain here, they will die as soon as we will."

"But why choose Earth as their new home? It is a primitive world. The Earthlings are thousands of years behind us."

"They will need that advantage to survive. This planet orbits a main sequence yellow star. The boys' cells will drink out the radiation. They will be strong, fast, invulnerable. They will look like one of them."

"But they won't _be_ one of them, Jor-El," said Lara. "Kal-El and Sul-El will be different. Odd." She pulled them closer. "They'll both be outcasts. Freaks. The Humans will kill them."

Jor-El shook his head. "No. They'll be gods to them."

Lara still wasn't comfortable with this is plan, but said nothing more on the matter. She glanced down on her sleeping sons' faces. She looked at Sul-El. Sul always had a serious and grumpy look on his tiny face. Perhaps he inherited it from his paternal grandfather, Seyg-El. That man was always miserable. Every things his sons did, Jor-El especially, would make him feel embarrassed and send him into a rage. Lara hoped Sul would not grow to be gloomy as his grandfather was.

Then she looked at Kal-El. Kal was always a happy baby. He always smiled at everyone. His laughter was pure joy. When Kal looked at your with that cheerful smile, you just wanted to smile along with him. It was as if the sun was in his smile and it brightened up your spirit. Lara would never again see that smile.

"I can't do it!" she sobbed. This was too much. "I thought I could but I can't!"

"Lara," said Jor-El, softly. He embraced his beloved and children. If only he had, had more time. If he had more time, he could have built a pod big enough for all four of them to escape. Alas, he was only able to build a pod for the twins. "I'm sorry, Lara. But we have to let them go."

Lara cried harder. "They'll be isolated," she whispered. "Alone."

Jor-El sighed. "They will not be alone. They will never be alone. We will be with them. Or at least a version of us." He lifted her chin up with his finger and looked her in the eyes. "We need to send the twins away, so they can live."

Lara sniffed. She leaned down and placed a kiss on Sul-El's forehead, then she placed a kiss on Kal-El's forehead. Lara handed the boys for their father and he too kissed them on their heads. Jor-El positioned the twins inside the space pod. He gazed at them and whispered, "Goodbye, my sons. Our hopes and dreams travel with you." Then he closed the pod and went to the control panel and began setting the coordinates for Earth.

"Is Kara's pod ready as well?" asked Lara.

"Yes. Lar Gand is seeing to that."

Lara made a face of distaste. "Oh yes. Lar Gand. The Daxamite."

Jor-El frowned at her. "Don't be cross, love. Not all Daxamites are bad, just as not all Kryptonians are good. He has been nothing but kind and helpful since he has arrived here."

"But did you have to recommend Earth? It was bad enough you let him stay with us."

"He felt like an outsider on his own planet. He left to find a better life. Hopefully he can find it on Earth. And while Kara protects the twins, Lar Gand can protect all three of them."

Lara sighed. "I'm sorry. We shouldn't be fighting each other in our final moment." She walked over to his side and et her husband wrap one of his arms around her, pulling her close.

Another earthquake hit. A larger one. The last one.

"Farewell, Kal-El, Sul-El," said Jor-El, launching the pod into space.

They watch the escape pod fly deeper into space until they could no longer see it. Jor-El pressed Lara against him in one final embrace. Locking eyes they moved closer, locking their lips together for one last kiss. They remained in that position even as their world around them burned.

* * *

His name was Lar Gand and he was not from Krypton. He hailed from the planet Daxam. His family consisted of his father Kel Gand, his mother Marisa Gand, his uncle Cil Gand, and his brother Del Gand. Lar Gand was an explorer and a seeker who studied forbidden lore. While Daxamites were a xenophobic race by nature, Lar had no problem interacting with other races. He enjoyed traveling to new places and see what they had to offer. He preferred other species to his own. There were only a handful a good things about life on Daxam.

The Daxamites valued happiness and had no issues with homosexuality. New relationships would be celebrated with big parties, and they enjoyed watching grand events such as sports and fighting spectacles. However, the people of Daxam practiced in bribery, and drugged themselves until they literally didn't feel anything. There were arranged marriages on Daxam, chosen at birth, which was unfortunate because if you did not love your arranged mate there was no way to get out of it. Things only got worse on Daxam when a woman named Rhea became queen.

Queen Rhea was an extremely arrogant, selfish, vicious, stubborn, and unreasonable individual who refused to compromise against anything that goes against her way. When the mentally unstable woman married the king, she murdered him two weeks later over a petty disagreement. Under her rule, slavery was made legal and Daxamites began engaging in public shaming and public punishment after a person is found guilt. The drug problem only doubled under Queen Rhea's rule.

One day Lar Gand had enough of life on Daxam and decided to escape. Queen Rhea had made space travel forbidden, but that did not stop Lar from wanting to leave. He readied his ship and left the cruel world he was born on and traveled the galaxy, until one day Lar Gand landed on Krypton and befriended Jor-El.

It was a known fact that the Kryptonians and the Daxamites did not think highly of one another. The Kryptonians viewed the Daxamites as selfish bullies, who care more about their own vices and personal well-being than the welfare of others. The Daxamites thought the Kryptonians were arrogant and self-righteous, deceptive and hypocritical, showing little to no remorse for their actions and their tendencies on being quick to judge others.

Jor-El was different. He wasn't arrogant like his fellow Kryptonian brethren. He welcomed Lar Gand into his home and hid him from other Kryptonians. The two treated each other with respect as Lar Gand lived with Jor-El and his family, Lar Gand working as Jor-El's assistant.

However, the rest of the El family made it clear they did not fancy Lar Gand being around. Lara never said it out loud, but Lar knew she did not want him in her home and hated it when he was near the twins. When Jor-El's brother Zor-El and Zor-El's family came to visit, they were rude to the Daxamite in one way or another. Zor-El refused to speak to him, Alura would give him dirty look when she thought he couldn't see (but he wasn't blind or naïve; he knew), and Kara... Kara wasn't shy to speak her mind.

Kara Zor-El was the daughter of Zor-El and Alura In-Ze, and the niece of Jor-El and Lara Lor-Van. She was sixteen years old and did things any other Kryptonian teen would do. She went to school and was the top of her class. She hung out with her friends. She had a flower her mother have her and would water it everyday. When she visited her aunt and uncle, Kara would play with her uncle's puppy. Kara's parents would take her to amazing planets on vacation, like places were the air smelled like cinnamon. And she was the sweetest girl. Kara was kind to everyone, always smiling and very considerate to others. The only person she was not kind to was Lar Gand.

She felt he didn't belong on Krypton and reminded him of this whenever she could. The Kryptonian girl didn't hesitate to call Lar Gand and his kind crazed party animals and "frat boys" (a term she learn when studying Earth with her father and uncle) and drug users and slavers. Kara thought his kind to be selfish and without honor and the man's very presence made her skin crawl. The thought of anyone being so self-centered and immoral enraged her. She could never be like that. All her life Kara wanted to help people, just like her parents.

But she'd never get the chance to help her people because her world ended.

* * *

On the day that Krypton died, Kara found herself in her father's lab while the Daxamite stood in from of a computer. He was putting in coordinates to Earth, the planet that would be her new home. She hated the very thought and she didn't hate easily. Except when it came to Lar Gand.

"How much longer?" Kara asked, irritated.

"Almost done," answered Lar Gand.

"I don't see why Uncle Jor couldn't do this."

"He needed to ensure your cousins were prepared for the journey and left safely. He trusted me to take care of your."

"Still don't understand why he would," the Kryptonian girl muttered. It still baffled her that her uncle would befriend a Daxamite. Though, Jor-El was a mild mannered person who tried to see good in others. That was something she always loved about him. Something she hoped Kal and Sul inherited.

Lar sighed. He should be used to the abuse by now. Only Jor-El had treated him like an equal. The scientist had been the only Kryptonian who didn't look down on Lar Gand for not being Kryptonian. The rest of the El Family acted like they were superior to him. High and mighty, enlightened Kryptonians looking down on the lowly peasant.

"My parents should be here," said Kara. "If it hadn't been for the invasion, they could have come with me."

"I know," said Lar Gand. "You don't care what I think, but I am sorry they're not here."

Kara glared at him. "Don't pretend you care about my family! You abandoned your own!"

At that Lar Gand whipped his head towards her and glared hard at her. "I _never_ abandoned my family," he said in a low, chilled tone. "They understood I was unhappy on Daxam and encouraged me to leave. Not a day goes by that I don't miss them."

He marched over to her until they were face to face, though he towered over her by a few inches. "The Daxamites may be a race of hierarchies ruled by kings and queens, but you're the one who acts like a princess. You verbally attack me every chance you get just because I'm from Daxam. You claim your people are more enlightened, yet they were stupid enough to mine their planet's core. Is it really a big surprise it became unstable? And when Jor-El tried to save them, they brushed him aside and called him mad. Now you and your cousins, and any criminals trapped in the Phantom Zone, will be the last of your people. And that's not my peoples' fault, it's yours."

Lar Gand walked back to the controls while Kara clenched her fists tight. She glared at the back of the Daxamite's head like she wanted to set him on fire with one look. The one blessing from this whole ordeal was that she would never have to see that jerk again. Even though he was going to the same planet as her, he would find a different part of it to live. Some place far from her, which pleased her greatly.

Another quake and an explosion of green was spotted outside. It was time. Kara entered her pod and was put into stasis. Lar Gand took a moment to just stare at the escape pod before he let out a sigh. "Good luck, Kara Zor-El. I pray to the gods you have a safe travel." He pressed the launch button and watched as Kara's pod flew up into space, away from her home world forever.

Now it was Lar Gand's turn to leave. The Daxamite quickly entered his ship and set a course for Earth. The ship rose up and flew out of Krypton's atmosphere. Lar Gand could see the once beautiful Krypton crumble until it finally blew apart. Chunks of Krypton shot out in multiple directions in space.

The Daxamite could see both Kara's and the twins' pods withdraw from the scene. The Boys' pod was ahead of their cousin's. Unfortunately, shockwaves from the explosion hit Kara's ship, causing it to go off course.

"No. No!" growled Lar Gand. He promised Jor-El he would see to it that his niece made it to Earth safely. Now the girl was knocked off her path and was heading to Rao knows were.

While worrying about Kara, Lar was unaware of the piece of debris heading towards his ship. It hit him at full force, causing him to jerk forward and smash the side of his head against the wall. His body slumped back in his chair, his left temple bleed and showed signs of bruising. As he slipped into unconsciousness, his ship continued to travel, making it's way to the Well of Stars.

* * *

It took three years for the pod to get there.

Three years to travel from one galaxy to another.

Three years of traveling until it finally crashed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it just me or are female Kryptonian names confusing? When it comes to male Kryptonian names, it's very straight forward. You have the first name and the last name and they're connected with a hyphen. Examples: Kal-El, Jor-El, Kon-El, Dru-Zod, Lor-Zod, Dev-Em, Jax-Ur. Simple, right? Then you have female Kryptonian names and for some reason the rules are always changing! At first it was simple. The female had a first name and their last name was their father's full name. Examples: Kara Zor-El, Lara Lor-Van, Alura In-Ze, Asha Del-Nar, Thara Ak-Var. Kara's father was Zor-El so her name is Kara Zor-El. Alura's father was In-Ze so she is Alura In-Ze. And when they got married they dropped their father's name and when by their first name. That seems simple to me. Yet they change the rules a lot. In some versions, Superman's birth mother is known as Lara-El instead of just being Lara. And Supergirl's mother is known as Alura Zor-El instead of being just Alura. Now most Earth women take their husband's surname when they marry them, so I guess it would make sense for Kryptonian women to do the same. But they should keep their continuity the same! Should married Kryptonian women just use their first name, take their husband's surname, or take their husband's full name? Don't make it confusing! Then we have Kryptonian women who don't have proper names. Women like Lesla-Lar, Car-Vex, Jayna-Zod, Kol-Da. Why don't they have proper names? Non of them have their father's first name as part of their name. Their names are like the men's. Why? A show on Syfy called Krypton, there is a character named Nyssa-Vex and she's the daughter of Daron-Vex. I don't understand why her name's not Nyssa Daron-Vex. What do you all think about this?
> 
> For Ray's twin brother's Kryptonian name, I was inspired by the old Superman: The Animated Series cartoon. Superman's maternal grandfather was called Sul-Van instead of Lor-Van for some reason. I took the "Sul" part and created the name Sul-El. I ended up finding out two days later there was a character called Sul-El in the comics.
> 
> Don't worry. Lar Gand is Mon-El. In the comics, Lar Gand is his real name, but he gets amnesia and Superman renames him Mon-El until he remembers his name. I went to dcDOTwikiaDOTcom/wiki/DC_Comics_Database (replace the DOT with actual periods to go to this site) for info on Lar Gand/Mon-El.
> 
> So what did you think of this first chapter? Please be honest and tell me if I need to work on anything or if I made any mistakes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ray Palmer knew he was different. That he wasn't like other kids, or other people in general. All he wanted was a friend.

Ray Palmer knew he was different. That he wasn't like other kids, or other people in general. His parents told him and his twin brother, Sydney Palmer, right away that they were adopted. Now being adopted wasn't really strange, lots of people were adopted. What made Ray's and his brother's case special was that they were aliens from another planet. They showed the boys the space ship, which was hidden under the garage. Ray's adoptive father, David Palmer, built a cellar under the garage. There was a hidden trap door that had stairs that lead to the pod. Ray would sneak in to look at it.

The reason the Palmers told the twins right away about them being aliens was because they had powers. All his life Ray had these amazing powers and seemed to discover a new power the older he got. He could lift heavy objects no boy his size should be able to lift. Ray could run at great speeds and he could jump and leap at expansive heights and distances. These powers were kept a secret, Ray's parents not wanting anyone to know their sons were superpowered aliens.

But despite the fact that no one knew about Ray being an alien, it was still clear he was different from everyone else. He may have been only eight years old, but he was smarter than your average eight year old. Ray was the only kid who actually liked homework and taking tests. His mannerism and his cheerful and sunny attitude seemed to drive people away. The kid liked to talk a lot, mostly about nerdy stuff. He was an easy target for bullies.

Not like his twin brother Sydney. Ray and Sydney may be identical twins, but their looks were the only thing they had in common. Sydney had no problem fitting in with others. He had lots of friends, got invited to birthday parties, everyone liked Sydney. No one in Ivy Town liked Ray. The alien boy had no friends, so he was very lonely. He wanted friends so badly that he'd pretend bullies like Gus and Ty were really his friends, but he knew deep down they hated his guts. Sydney seemed to hate him too. They're supposed to be best friends, but Sydney couldn't stand Ray. The other boy would avoid Ray, and when they were together, he'd spends most of his time tormenting Ray, calling him all sorts of mean names that made Ray cry.

So the kid spent his time immersing himself in Arthurian lore, watching musicals like _Singin' in the Rain_ and sci-fi movies like _Star Wars_ a million times, taking care of stray animals he found (which his mother, Sandy Palmer, didn't like very much), and making his own inventions. Anything to distract himself from loneliness. Sometimes it wasn't so bad being alone. Other times Ray just wanted to ball his eyes out.

Today Ray was just sitting alone in his room, facing in front of a mirror. He was staring at his eyes. His eyes, liked the rest of him, looked very human. The eyes balls were white like they were supposed to be. The iris was blue and the pupil was black. Totally normal eyes. With some exceptions. His eyes were blue like seventeen percent of the world's population, but no one had blue eyes like Ray. They were an unearthly shade of blue. A brilliant, bright, crystal blue found no where else. Ray had been told many times he had beautiful eyes, his mom especially would say how beautiful his eyes were. Unfortunately, his eyes being a unique shade of blue weren't the only thing that made Ray's eyes different then human eyes.

Earlier that day in school, Ray had been at his desk jotting down notes. When his teacher called on him to answer a question, he looked up at her and noticed something strange happening. Ray was starting to see through her clothes! And Ray was grossed out by this because ew! he didn't wanna see his teacher naked! How skeevy.

But then it got worse! Ray was able to see inside her body! The freaked out boy could see her skeleton and watched her heart beat in her chest. He rapidly looked around the classroom and discerned he could x-ray his classmates as well. Feeling so overwhelmed, Ray began panting, ignoring his teacher as she asked if he was alright. When if became too much, he bolted out of the room and hide in a janitor's closet. He locked himself in until his mother came to pick him up.

Now Ray was in his bedroom, hating his eyes. Why did he have to discover a new power? And why did it have to be x-ray vision? It was so horrifying what happened! And now he could hear his parent arguing about him in the kitchen. Another "extraordinary gift" Ray had was that his senses, including his hearing, were heightened. So even though he was upstairs in his room, he could hear Sandy and David arguing about him like they were in the room with him.

"He's a weird kid, Sandy!" yelled David.

"I know that, David!" Sandy yelled back. "This is the third time this month they had to call me!"

Ray flinched. Yeah it's true he's had some accidents in the past, but this was only the second one that had to do with Ray having trouble with his powers. The rest were things like him starting fires in class or cutting school to hang out at the library or museum.

Sandy sighed. "I know raising an alien isn't easy-"

"I don't give a shit that he's an alien, woman! Sydney's an alien too, but he doesn't cause trouble like Raymond does! Sydney never had problems dealing with these stupid powers that keep popping up! But it's not just the powers, it's Raymond himself! The queer little shit can't act normal to save his life! For god's sake, he thanks his teachers for pop quizzes! And then you go and raise him to be a pussy!"

"Excuse me!?"

"He's too dame polite to the point were it's irritating! Raymond let's all the other kids walk all over him, never defending himself! Yes, he's too strong, but he can still defend himself! You raised him to think the world is made of sunshine and marshmallows! Now the boy hides away and thinks his toys are his friends! This is your fault!"

(Slap!) "Screw you, David!"

Tear threatened to spill from Ray's eyes as he hugged his knees to his chest. He's hear versions of this fight may times, but it never gets easier to hear. It's not his fault school is boring and he could probably teach the class better than most of the teacher. And what was wrong with being polite? How can you be too polite?

Ray didn't wanna hear anymore so he jumped out his bedroom window and began walking to the park. Once there he sat on the swings and his body moved back and forth, back and forth.

'Why can't I be normal like Sydney and the other kids?' Ray thought.

He stopped swinging and just sat there with his head down. No one this his suburban town wanted to be his friend. On the outside he'd smile and pretend all was good. That the kids that bullied him were his friends, but he knew better and it hurt. It hurt that he was friendless and lonely. He wanted at least one friend. If he was normal he'd have friends.

As the alien child threw him a pity party, a black and white cat with green eyes walked up to him and pressed its nose to his shoe. Ray look at the cat and he cat stared back at him. Ray gave it a small smiles and reached down to pet it. The cat purred at Ray's tough and nuzzled against him.

"Hi, kitty! Do you wanna be my friend?"

He took the meow the cat gave out as a yes. Ray and the kitty cat began playing in the park together. They were the only ones in the park and Ray was fine with that. He was having fun with his new friend. Everything was going well when suddenly a hawk swooped down and snatched the cat up.

"Kitty!" cried out Ray.

Panicking, Ray ran after the hawk as the bird flew off with his friend. He shouted, "Stop! That's my friend! You can't just take my friend! Let her go!" But the hawk didn't let go of the cat. Ray picked up a rock and threw it at the bird, but it flew out of the way. The hawk let out a screech, which to Ray's ears sounded like the bird was laughing at him.

Ray didn't know what to do. His eyes began to fill up with tears. He was filled with sorrow and fear as his furry friend was carried away. But he was also filled with anger. How dare the hawk take away his only friend? His vibrant blue eyes turned an anger red. Narrowing said anger red eyes, he was unaware they were building up heat.

"I SAID LET THE KITTY GO!"

Heat vision was fired off at full blast! Both the hawk and the cat explode, and the front paw of the cat fell at Ray's feet. Ray screamed and fell backwards. Crawling over on his hands and knees, Ray stare at the paw in horror. He then covered his face with his hands and began to sob, repeating the words "I'm sorry!" and "I didn't mean to!" over and over. He sobbed and hiccupped for what felt like hours. When he finally stopped crying, he sniffed and looked up to notice a little girl around his age with red hair watching him. Her green eyes were opened wide and her mouth hung open with shock.

Ray was horrified. He thought he was still alone in the park, but someone saw him! Someone saw him use his powers! That random redhead saw him use his new heat vision power to blow up a cat. Oh god! What now? This was all too much!

Ray used his superhuman speed to leave the park and ended up back in his room. He got under the covers and cried into his pillow. He ended up crying himself to sleep.

* * *

The next day, Mrs. Palmer suggested they go greet the new neighbors. A new family had arrived to town a couple days ago and moved into the house across from the Palmers' home. With a store bought apple pie, the Palmer Family went over to welcome the new family to the neighborhood.

They waited patiently after ringing the doorbell. Not long after, a man named Thomas Lang and his wife Carol Lang greeted them and invited them in.

Ray had been smiling when he and his family arrived. Yesterday's events still fresh in his mind, but he wasn't going to dwell on them. Today was a new day. He was excited to meet new people, and had high hopes that whoever moved across from him had kids he could befriend. When the Langs said they had a daughter his age, his smile grew.

However, when they called their daughter to come down and meet the Palmers, Ray's smile immediately fell at the sight of her. His blood felt like ice.

It was the girl with red hair from the park.

"And this is our daughter Lana," said Mr. Lang.

The two eight year olds just looked at each other. Neither of them knew what to say. Eventually, the girl-Lana-waved her hand shyly and said, "Hi," in a soft tone. Ray was silent, but gave a small wave back. Sydney just grumbled a hello at Lana.

While the parent were in the kitchen socializing and Sydney sat on the couch in the living room, playing a handheld video game, Ray stood in a corner, hugging himself. He'd never felt so sick to his stomach before. That Lana girl saw him murder a cat with heat vision the other day. Had she told her parent about it? She had to be frightened of him.

'I bet she thinks I'm some kind of monster,' though Ray.

He fought hard not to cry. He didn't want his brother to see and make fun of him. Or for his parents to see and question him. Ray didn't tell his folks about yesterday and hoped to keep them in the dark. Was this girl going to rat him out to them? Ray shut his eyes tight to hold back the tears.

Lana stood on the opposite side of the room, watching the boy she saw yesterday keep to himself with a miserable look on his face. She knew he was the one she saw in the park after the scared look he had when he saw her. Lana didn't expect to see the boy again, yet here he was in her house.

The other boy looked mean so Lana chosen not to bother with him. The one in the corner looked so sad. Was he going to cry?

At last, after working up the courage, Lana walked over to Ray. She raised her hand and tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention.

He looked at her with shock. 'She came by me? I thought she'd wanna stay away from me.'

Lana gave him a mousy smile. "Hello. Do you. . . y-you wa-wanna come with me to my room?"

Ray was thunderstruck by the question. 'She wants to be alone in her room with me?' No one had wanted to be in Ray's company before, and now here was this girl who knew he wasn't normal like other kids, but wanted to be near him. After a bit Ray nodded his head and followed Lana upstairs to her room.

The place didn't look too girl or have any pink. Though honestly Ray didn't know what to expect since he's never been invited to someone's room before. No kid had ever invited him to their house, and whenever he tried inviting someone he was tuned down. Lana's room had white walls, wood floor, beige drawers, a beige dresser with a mirror, a brown bookcase with some books on it, a TV on top of the bookcase, and her bed had a purple comforter on it. The wall had pictures of medieval knights and princess on them, which made Ray smile a bit.

They both sat on the bed in silence. Kicking their legs back and forth, they looked anywhere but at each other. As time passed Ray swallowed and worked up the courage to ask, "Did tell anyone what you saw? Your parents?" He looked down as he asked.

Lana shook her head no even though Ray couldn't see her do that. "I didn't tell them. Even if I thought they'd believe me I wouldn't tell them."

"W-Why?" Ray slowly brought his head up to look at her. "Di-did you think I'd blast you too if you talked?"

She shook her head again. "No. I know you wouldn't hurt me. 'Cause I know you didn't hurt the cat on purpose."

Now this was a huge shock to Ray. He was sure this girl would think he intentionally tried to kill the cat. Yet here she was claiming she thought he didn't mean to blast the kitty to death.

"R-Really?"

Lana nodded. "Yeah. I saw it all. You were trying to save the cat from that mean hawk. You didn't mean to blow them up. And then you started to cry after what happened. If you had really meant to hurt that cat, you wouldn't've felt so bad."

Ray sniffed and rubbed his eyes before tears could stream down his cheeks. "So, you're not scared of me? You don't think I'm a monster?"

Lana bit her bottom lip. "Well, I was a little scared of what I saw." Seeing his hurt expression, she quickly added, "But I don't think you're the kind of person who'd use their power to hurt anyone. I think you're a good person."

"But you just met me," Ray pointed out.

"I guess I just have a good feeling about you," said Lana with a shrug.

This caused Ray lips to stretch into a big smile. Lana found herself smiling back at him.

"I think we should start over," said Ray. He waved at her. "Hi! My name's Ray Palmer."

Lana giggled. "Hi, Ray. I'm Lana Lang."

The two spent hours talking to each other. They shared their likes and dislikes. What their families were like. Where Lana used to live and what Ivy Town was like. Turns out they were both fans of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Ray could really open up to Lana. He was comfortable around her and trusted her with his secrets. The human looking alien told her about all his powers. How he was strong, could look though walls, and so on. Ray explained how he liked jumping real high 'cause it was like flying, except he eventually had to come down, but it was still fun. He enjoyed using his super speed, zooming around everywhere. Lana looked amazed.

"Yeah, having super powers can be really cool, but sometimes they make life difficult," confessed Ray. "Sometimes the world gets too loud. It feels too big."

"Well, maybe you can make it quieter," said Lana. "Maybe you can try and make it smaller."

"How?"

"Well, the next time you feel overwhelmed, just close your eyes and take a deep breath. Pretend you're in clam waters, swimming towards an island. Or that you're in space, floating in silence."

"Can I pretend I'm with you, holding hands on this bed?"

Lana smiled at him. "Sure. You can hold my hand now, if you want." She slipped her hand into his. Ray held it as gently as he could, not wanting to break it. He felt more content.

"We're friends now, right?"

"Best friends."

When it was finally time for the Palmer Family to leave, Ray left with the biggest grin on his face.

Finally, Ray Palmer had a real friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh I feel so bad about giving Ray a mean family and having him kill a cat! But this had to be. But at least now he has a friend. Lana Lang!
> 
> In the comics, when Lana Lang was barely a week old, on their way home from picking their daughter up from the hospital, on the same day Martha Kent and Jonathan Kent found the baby Superman, Thomas and Carol Lang were abducted by Manhunters, leaving a baby Lana orphaned. Thomas and Carol were experimented on and died. I decided they get to live and raise Lana in this story.
> 
> Please review this chapter and tell me what you think. I'm open to suggestions and improvements.


	3. Chapter 3

"Can't keep doing the same useless and ineffective things, you know. I gotta do something different. I'm gonna take some time and figure out what that is. But, uh, it'll still include the occasional superhero thing when you need me."

And Ray knew exactly where he could go to think about his next move. So after he said his goodbyes to Team Arrow, he flew off. But not with his A.T.O.M. Exosuit. No, Ray took off and flew away on his own. Flight had been the last power he discovered, and there was a long list of things he could do. He had been eighteen when he discovered this ability, and it was one of his favorites. The not-so-dead billionaire always enjoyed the feel of flying in the sky. It always gave him peace.

Ray continued to fly, heading north. Very north. All the way to the arctic. Now, any human would be beyond freezing in the North Pole, even with the proper clothing. But not Ray. All he had on were black skinny jeans, black boots, and a tight, gray short sleeve t-shirt. No coat, no hat, no gloves. The cold didn't seem to bother him.

Once he reached the arctic, Ray could make out a familiar structure. His beautiful ice palace known as the Fortress of Solitude was always quite the sight. It could take one's breath away, with it's grand size and beauty.

For so long, Ray had no idea what he was. He knew he wasn't human, but he had no clue as to what he was or where he came from. It was one summer when he was fifteen, he decided to go on a journey to find answers. His father and brother wouldn't care that he left, but he figured his mom would be at least a little worried if he just ran off. He told his family he was going to space camp so that Sandy wouldn't worry. Ray took the crystals found in his baby ship and traveled. His journey led him to the North Pole and he was able to use one of the crystals, watching in awe as random shards of ice jutted irrationally about, but managed to come together to form a fortress.

Once inside Ray finally had the truth. He interacted with an artificial intelligence modeled after his father, and one of his mother, and they told him that he was Kryptonian. Ray (who learned his real name was Kal-El) and his brother (Sul-El) had been sent to Earth because their home world, Krypton, had an unstable core and was going to die. Their parents sent them to Earth so they could live. It was through his birth parents that Ray was able to learn about his culture, was taught to speak and read Kryptonese, and learned everything on what it meant to be Kryptonian. Ray returned home feeling more complete. And whenever he felt lonely or needed guidance, he would go to the Fortress to talk to his birth parents.

The Kryptonian man landed in front of the Fortress of Solitude. He went to pick up the hidden key so he could open the door. The key was gold in color and pretty big. And pretty heavy. Being made from super dense dwarf star, only someone with superhuman strength like Ray could lift it. Ray pressed the key in and waited. Once he pulled it out, he observed as the entrance opened up, revealing a smooth passage. Ray walked in and went straight to the vestibule. It was the foyer chamber of the Fortress, containing a giant statue memorializing his parents. They were poised holding onto an effigy of Krypton.

" _Mother? Father?_ " Ray called out in Kryptonese. " _I've returned! I know I've been gone awhile!_ "

" _Hello, Kal,_ " spoke a male voice.

Ray whipped his head around at the voice. He turned his body and was face to face with his father and mother, Jor-El and Lara. Ray was the splitting image of his father. Both men were tall, had basically the same built, same face, same hair color, same everything. Ray was a carbon copy of Jor-El. Well, almost. The only thing of Jor-El's that Ray didn't have were the eyes. While Ray's irises were blue, Jor-El's were black. Ray got his blue eyes from his mother.

His mother. She was so beautiful. Lara had the same brilliant blue eyes not found on Earth as her son. Her hair was long and black, thick and wavy. Ray wondered if his real mother's hair had been soft to the touch. She was thin but strong, her cheek bones were high, and her skin was pale, though not an ugly, sickly type of pale. To Ray, she reminded him of the fairytale character Snow White. Lara always looked at Ray with a loving gaze that every mother should give their child. Every time she looked at him with that gaze, Ray's heart burst with love and joy. Sandy may have put up with him and say that she loved him, but she never looked at him like Lara did.

Ray smiled at his birth parents. He always wished they were the real versions so that he could embrace them, but he was glad to at least get to see them, talk to them. " _Hello, Mother, Father. I'm_ _really sorry for being MIA these past few months, but something happened to me._ " So Ray went into details on how he was trying to get his A.T.O.M. suit to shrink, only for it to blow up. He ended up small and held captive by Damien Darhk for six months.

" _But then my friends were able to rescue me!_ " said Ray, smiling.

" _I am grateful to them for bringing you back to us, my star child,_ " said Lara, giving her son a soft and loving smile of her own.

Ray grinned at his parents, but then his face became serious and he asked, " _Did I make a mistake choosing to save the world without using my powers? No one back in Ivy Town appreciated my help. One guy even blamed me for his sister's death, saying I had no right to interfere with human lives and change fate._ " Ray quickly wiped a tear away. " _But I can't seem to make a positive difference in the world pretending to be human either. I started a company and invented things to help people, but no one seems to care. My company is now on life support. Not sure I'm making much of a difference as the Atom either. Starling City - I mean Star City - oh, they renamed Starling City "Star City" because of me, which was nice! - it doesn't seem to need me. It has Green Arrow, Speedy, Black Canary, and other vigilantes. Who needs the Atom? Felicity says I should stop playing dead, but why? So I can go back to being CEO and do what I did before? It didn't amount to anything._ " Ray hung his head down in shame. " _I feel like I let you both down._ "

" _Kal-El, you can never let us down,_ " said Jor-El. " _You may not see it, but you have done so much for the people of Earth. I once asked you to live as one of them to discover where your strength and your powers are needed. And you used your strengths to better the lives of many._ "

" _But it wasn't enough,_ " argued Ray. " _You asked me to be the light to show the way. But I'm not the beacon of hope to humanity you wanted me to be._ "

Lara walked up to her son. Her lips formed a sad smile. It was as if she was in pain from witnessing her child's internal suffering. " _How can you have so much love for others, yet so little love for yourself? I always feared you would be isolated and alone, but you have so many people in your life who care for you. You have been the light to several individuals. Can you truly tell me they would be better off never having met you?_ "

Ray thought about Lana and how they did practically everything together when they were kids. She had helped him get a handle of every new power he discovered. They took boxing and judo classes together. She also gave him the confidence to make more friends like Chloe Sullivan, Henry James Olsen (or Jimmy Olsen for short), Pete Ross, Norman Brawler, Bill Henderson, Jodi Melville, and Dan Turpin back in high school. Ray had protected Lana from every super powered weirdo who crushed on her and tried to kill her if they couldn't have her. They, plus Chloe, would investigate all the weird stuff that went down in Ivy Town, and deal with Meteor Freaks as Chloe called them. He even helped some of the "freaks" control their powers so they didn't hurt anyone.

Ray started to smile from ear to ear. " _I guess I did help a lot of people growing up. And even now as part of Team Arrow, I've been slowly making a difference. I've helped Oliver and the others take down Deathbolt and Ra's al Ghul. I've even teamed up with Team Flash to take out Bug-Eyed Bandit._ "

"See, little cousin," said a female voice from behind him, speaking in English. "You are making a difference. Ya gotta stop being so hard on yourself, Ray."

Ray's smile got bigger when he heard that voice. "Linda," he whispered. The scientist turned around to see a woman in jeans, white sneakers, and a light blue blouse. Her blond hair was cut short, styled as a layered bob cut. The woman's unearthly blue eyes twinkled with joy as she smiled back at him.

"Kara."

"Kal."

Kara Zor-El finally arrived to Earth when Ray was sixteen. When her pod crash landed in Ivy Town, Ray begged his folks to let her live with them. They were reluctant to do so at first, but in time they did give in and let Kara stay. She was given a human name, Linda Lee, to blend in. Sandy quickly grew to like having a "niece" (they told people Kara/Linda was their niece) around to do mother/daughter things like go shopping and stuff. Linda had trouble controlling her powers, but Ray was more than happy to help his newly discovered cousin. Ray would help her adjust to Earth, and Linda would tell him stories about growing up on Krypton and what it was like and what their family was like.

Ray started walking her way. Once they stood face to face, the two Kryptonians embraced each other in a hug.

"I'm so glad you're okay," said Linda Lee. "You have no idea how worried about you I was!"

"I'm sorry," said Ray, pulling away. He rubbed the back of his head. "It's not like I wanted to get captured for six months."

"Well duh!" Linda smirked and teased, "Not even you are _that_ dumb!"

"Oh!" exclaimed Ray with mock hurt. "How dare you! I have four PhD's-"

"I thought you said you had only three," questioned Linda, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh. . ."

Linda burst out laughing. Ray soon followed her. They could tease each other without being mean or hurting each others feelings. Unlike with Sydney who always teased Ray to hurt him. Linda and Ray may be cousins, but she was like a sister to Ray. One he could talk to and make him feel better.

Calming down and wiped a tear that started to form from laughing so much, Linda looked at her cousin with concern. "Are you going to be okay? I know about what's happening with your company. And I know things haven't always been easy for you for quite some time now. After what happened with Anna. Plus that bitch who dumped you."

"Hey, Felicity and I may not be dating anymore, but she's still my friend." Ray frowned. "Please don't call her a bitch."

"I can't help the way I feel about her! After what she did to you! She only started dating you because the guy she wanted didn't wanna date her! So she goes and uses you to try and forget about him! Then when they both get over whatever bullshit they had, she breaks up with you and dates him!"

"That is _not_ what happened," Ray said sternly, face steeling up. "I know you're just trying to look out for me, but Oliver and Felicity are my friends and I'm happy for them. Felicity didn't use me, okay? We just didn't work out, it happens. She and Oliver are good together."

Linda shook her head sadly. "Your heart is just too big. You deny yourself happiness to make sure others don't suffer. But what about you? She used you, Kal." She placed her hand on his shoulder, looking him straight in the eyes. "Denial isn't just a river in Egypt, baby cousin."

"You know, technically we're the same age," pointed out Ray with a half smile, half smirk. "So no more of this "little" and "baby" business."

"Still older, so I know what's best!"

"Okay. You're an old lady."

Linda punched him hard, causing him to stumble back a few steps. Ray just laughed as he rubbed his shoulder.

"Okay, okay! Not old!" Ray grinned. "I'm glad I have you looking out for me, but you don't have to worry about me so much. You don't have to protect me."

"I feel like I do. Not just because you're so innocent, but I promised Uncle Jor I'd look out for you and Sul."

"Well, me and Sydney are grown men. It's not your responsibility to constantly look after us. You have your own life, your own destiny."

"I guess," the female Kryptonian muttered.

Ray raised an eyebrow in concern. "Are you okay?" he questioned, resting a hand on her shoulder.

Linda chose to look at her feet instead of her cousin. She wasn't really sure what the problem was. She had a great job in National City as a reporter. Family and friends who care about her. Everything was good, yet sometimes Linda got these feelings. Feelings like she was meant to do something, had this higher calling, but wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to do.

She looked up at Ray and shared these thoughts. The reporter said it must seem crazy, but the inventor didn't think so. He understood were she was coming from. He felt the same way many times. That he was meant to do more, meant to help people. Becoming the Atom helped to fill this void inside of him and made him feel good to help others who needed help. He knew for awhile it was what he was meant to do. He was meant to be a hero.

"I'll be all right," said Ray. "Things at Palmer Tech may not be going smooth like I hoped, but it's okay. I'm not really sure what my next move is, but I'll figure something out."

"I won't stop worrying over you," said Linda.

"And I'll never stop worrying about you too. We're family, it's what we do." Ray grinned. "I haven't finished talking to my birth parents. Still have a lot to tell them. Wanna join me?"

Linda smiled and nodded. As they walked over, she spoke, "There's someone else who needs to know that you're alive."

"Yeah. I plan to see her next."

* * *

Metropolis

Lana lived alone in the penthouse of Hammersmith Tower. Sure, at times it was pretty lonely, but after a long day at work, the redhead didn't mind some alone time at home. There was only one person she could think of that she didn't mind visiting her, but he was still missing.

Feet bare, and wearing loose sweat pants and an old Metropolis University sweatshirt, Lana poured herself a glass of wine. Walking out of the kitchen and into the living room, Lana sat on her couch and took a sip of her wine. Glancing at the clock, she saw it was 8:06 PM. The human woman placed her glass on the coffee table and picked up the book left there. She began reading where she last left off.

She only read two pages when something knocked on her window. Looking up, Lana first gasped, then beamed when she saw who it was.

Ray grinned and waved his hand at her. He had flown up to her window and knocked to get her attention. Ray stood on her balcony, waiting for her to let him in.

Lana rushed over to open the glass door. Once he stepped inside, Lana wrapped her arms around Ray and squeezed him as tightly as she could. Ray returned the embrace, though he was careful not to squeeze too tight.

"I knew it! I knew you didn't die!" exclaimed Lana. "The guy who can swallow a bomb and live can't be kill in a simple explosion!"

Ray smiled into her hair. When he pulled away, he rubbed the back of his head and gave her a sheepish smile. "Yeah. Sorry I didn't call or come sooner. I was held captive for months. And when Team Arrow rescued me, I knew I should have came here, but they needed my help and I kinda forgot."

Lana burst into laughter, shaking her head back and forth. "That is so you, Ray Palmer! Being so forgetful and helping others in need! Never change!"

"I'm set in stone!"

The redhead grinned at her best friend. He gave her his own toothy smile, showing off those pearly white teeth of his. Ray didn't realize how much he missed Lana until this moment. 'Man I can be a real scatterbrain sometimes,' thought Ray. 'I should've came the second I was freed.' It was a good thing Lana was patient when it came to Ray. Most people weren't.

Ray began to apologize. "I'm sorry I-" But Lana cut him off by placing her hand over his mouth. "Forget it. You're here now. So let's just sit and catch up, kay?"

Ray beamed and nodded. Again he found himself telling the tale of his capture and rescue. Which led to Ray going into detail on how he was helping Team Arrow deal with Damien Darhk and his Ghosts. The alien superhero was careful not to reveal anyone's secret identity. He may trust Lana with him being an alien and being the Atom, and knew she wouldn't tell anyone Oliver Queen was the Green Arrow, but it wasn't his place to rat his friends out like that. And of course he explained his reasoning for not wanting to tell the world he's not dead.

"Ugh!" groaned Ray. "Lana, have you ever felt like the universe was against you?" He threw his head back, looking at the ceiling as he sat on the couch.

"Plenty of times," said Lana, resting her head on her hand. "So have many, many people at one point. It'll get better. Remember how you said you'd never find love again and would never kiss a woman after Anna? Now you found love again! Which reminds me, I really need to meet your new girlfriend."

Ray winced. That's right. He hadn't had a chance to update Lana on his love life. Or rather lack of love life. "Uh, actually Felicity and I broke up and she started seeing someone else not too long after."

Lana was appalled to hear this. "What!? Oh Ray!" She pulled him into a hug. "I'm so sorry," Lana said gently, rubbing his back up and down. How could this Felicity person just break up with Ray, then date somebody new so soon!? Ray was the sweetest, kindest soul! Who'd let someone like that go?

"You know what hurts? A part of me is starting to think Linda was right. That Felicity was just using me until someone better came along." Ray could feel the tears in the corner of his eyes. He sniffed. "I kn-knew I shouldn't've opened m-my heart again. I should have stu-stuck to my decision to ne-ne-never kiss another woman. I'll never find true love."

"Ray Palmer, never say that again!" Lana took the Kryptonian's face in her hands and looked him in the eyes. "There is someone out there for everyone, especially you! You are smart, kind, brave, outgoing, positive, charismatic, selfless, and many other wonderful things! There is somebody in the world waiting for you to find and love them, and they to love you!" Lana smiled. "Your other half will come. Have some faith."

After wiping the corners of his eyes with his thumb, Ray gave Lana a smile. "You always know the right things to say."

"Perks of being a best friend."

"We're really good together, aren't we?"

"We are."

"Maybe we should just get married. We love each other and make a great team. It could work out."

Lana gave him a faint smile. "Oh Ray. We may love each other, but we're not in love. The two of us are like brother and sister. And if we got married, we would deny ourselves the chance to be with the people we're meant to be with."

Ray sighed. It's true. He loved Lana, but only platonically. "Yeah, guess you're right." He gave her a faint smile. "I feel like we've only been talking about me and that makes me feel so selfish. I wanna hear all about you. What's been going on in the life of Lana Lang?"

They continued to talk for hours. Lana talked about her job at the Daily Planet (she was the editor of the business section) and complained about some of her co-workers. She laughed when Ray offered to use his heat vision to burn Steve Lombard's toupee if the man tried to harass her again. Before either of them knew it, it was 1:27 AM. Lana offered for Ray to spend the night. She had a guest room she had for him when he visited. Giving each other an innocent peck on the cheek, they wished each other good night and went to bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel so bad for Ray, but he has a best friend and a cousin to have his back. I put in the story that Ray and Lana took boxing and judo classes together because in the show Ray is shown to use boxing skills to fight and in the comics he is a judo master. Seriously, he developed a proficiency in the martial art judo. Really sucks the show doesn't have him being great at judo because it would have been awesome to see.
> 
> Is anyone else pissed at Felicity, or just me? I hope this turned out good and I did the characters justice. If not, please let me know because I want this to be good. So please point out any mistakes or anything that doesn't work.
> 
> Thanks for reading and please review.


	4. Chapter 4

A crack of sunlight greeted Ray as he woke up in Lana's penthouse. A glance at the clock said it was 6:05 AM. He laid in bed as his super hearing kicked in. The Kryptonian could hear Metropolis come alive with birds chirping, cars honking, people either greeting each other a good morning or arguing over something stupid. Soon Ray's attention was taken to Lana's kitchen. He knew she was up already because he could hear her moving about to make coffee. He could also hear the song "Mamma Mia" by ABBA being playing from her phone.

_I've been cheated by you since I don't know when_  
_So I made up my mind, it must come to an end_  
_Look at me now, will I ever learn?_  
_I don't know how but I suddenly lose control_  
_There's a fire within my soul_  
_Just one look and I can hear a bell ring_  
_One more look and I forget everything, w-o-o-o-oh_

_Mamma mia, here I go again_  
_My my, how can I resist you?_  
_Mamma mia, does it show again?_  
_My my, just how much I've missed you_  
_Yes, I've been brokenhearted_  
_Blue since the day we parted_  
_Why, why did I ever let you go?_  
_Mamma mia, now I really know,_  
_My my, I could never let you go._

Ray smiled as he listened to the song. He always loved musicals. _Singin' in the Rain_ was his absolute favorite, but he did appreciate other musicals like _Mamma Mia_ as well. Listening to ABBA songs made him think of an old friend who always loved hearing their songs growing up. His friend loved to sing and dance, and he could sing every single ABBA song word for word.

'Too bad he's so far away,' thought Ray. 'It'd be nice to see how he's doing, but I can't visit and he knows better then to come.'

_I've been angry and sad about things that you do_  
_I can't count all the times that I've told you we're through_  
_And when you go, when you slam the door_  
_I think you know that you won't be away too long_  
_You know that I'm not that strong_  
_Just one look and I can hear a bell ring_  
_One more look and I forget everything, w-o-o-o-oh_

_Mamma mia, here I go again_  
_My my, how can I resist you?_  
_Mamma mia, does it show again?_  
_My my, just how much I've missed you_  
_Yes, I've been brokenhearted_  
_Blue since the day we parted_  
_Why, why did I ever let you go?_  
_Mamma mia, even if I say_  
_Bye bye, leave me now or never_  
_Mamma mia, it's a game we play_  
_Bye bye doesn't mean forever_

_Mamma mia, here I go again_  
_My my, how can I resist you?_  
_Mamma mia, does it show again?_  
_My my, just how much I've missed you_  
_Yes, I've been brokenhearted_  
_Blue since the day we parted_  
_Why, why did I ever let you go?_  
_Mamma mia, now I really know_  
_My my, I could never let you go_

Ray hopped out of bed, then quickly made it. Next, he walked into Lana's bathroom to take a shower, then brushed his teeth. Ray reentered the bedroom, wearing only a pair of blue boxers. He was using his towel to rub his hair dry. Lana had taken the liberty of picking out an outfit for him and placed it on the bed for him to see. He chuckled at what she selected, shaking his head.

Soon Ray entered the kitchen, dressed in jeans and a blue short sleeve t-shirt. On the shirt was a red diamond shaped pentagon with a red "S" shape inside with a yellow background. There was a red jacket tied around his neck like a cape. Ray placed his hands on his hips and did a superhero pose.

Lana burst into giggles when she saw him. "Well, if it isn't Super Ray! Come to save the day?"

Ray had a toothy grin on his face. "I try. You made this for me?"

Lana shrugged. "I thought you could wear it in private. It is your family crest, after all."

Ray caressed the S that wasn't an S with his right hand. "Thank you, Lana. I love it." He really did. He adored his family crest. It was a symbol of hope. Hope was what the House of El stood for. What Ray wanted to stand for. But he couldn't wear it in public. It'd be hard to explain it without explaining he wasn't human. And having an "S" on his A.T.O.M. suit would look weird since he's the Atom and the word atom starts with "A".

Lana turned off the music and took a sip of her coffee. "I have to go to work early, otherwise I'd suggest we go for breakfast at our favorite diner."

"That's okay," said Ray with an understanding look. He untied the jacket from his neck and slipped his arms into it. He zipped it all the way up. "I can just stop by Central City and let my friends there know I'm alive." He could also come out to Team Flash about being an alien. He felt he knew them long enough to trust them with this. He told Lana so.

"You sure about this?"

"I am. It's not like they'd call Area 51 on me. In a way it'd be kinda hypocritical since they deal with metahumans and work with the Flash. Me being an alien shouldn't be _that_ freaky."

"Yeah, true." Ray looked human. And those metahumans still looked human, and used to be regular humans before getting mutated by that particle accelerator. They should be able to handle the idea of extraterrestrials being real. "Thinking of those metahumans in Central City reminds me of when we had to deal with metahumans back in Ivy town. Of course, we called them "meteor freaks" instead of "metahumans" because-"

"Because of the Kryptonite laced meteor rocks," finished Ray. "Yeah I remember." He began to frown. No matter how hard he tried, and no matter how many times his friends told him it wasn't his fault, he still felt he was somehow responsible for the weird shit that went down in his old suburban home.

"Don't do that. Don't go blaming yourself. It wasn't your fault," said Lana. "You didn't cause the meteor shower, or give anyone powers, or told them to use their powers to hurt people. That's on them. You did everything you could to help people."

"Sorry. I know. Bad habit I need to break."

She gave him a faint smile. "Take the confidence you use in business and apply it to the rest of you." She left for a moment to get her bag and keys. When she was back, Lana said, "Don't go disappearing on me again please. I don't want to worry about you for six months again. And even before the kidnapping we didn't see much of each other." If they had made time to meet up, she'd've know about the break-up sooner. Then she'd've chewed that bitch out. Or had Linda do it. "We need to make time to hang out. I've been thinking of gathering our old friends for a little get together."

Ray beamed. "That sounds great! I'd love to see Chloe and Jimmy and the others! It's been too long! Just say when and I'll be there!"

Lana gave her best friend a hug and a peck on the cheek. "I gotta get going. Call me later?"

"I will. Promise. And I promise not to just disappear again. I'll keep you more in the loop."

* * *

A few days after being rescued, Ray came clean to Team Arrow about being Kryptonian. Everything was out in the open. Starting with him coming to Earth with a spaceship when he was a baby, then going into how he made the Fortress of Solitude and met his birth parents. He even told them about all his powers and demonstrated a few. And went over his weaknesses.

Everyone had there own reactions to this new discovery of their friend. Diggle of course was being weird about it, like he's weird about Barry and metahumans and anything not considered "normal". Thea was actually really excited to find out she knew an actual honest to god alien, and asked if Ray would show her the ship someday. Felicity was upset at first. Only because Ray kept this from her for so long. Ray forced himself to remain calm and not give the woman a steely look as she cried and yelled at him. Once she was done, Ray explained in a composed and diplomatic manner why he kept this secret from her. Being an alien is not something you tell people right away. Also, there had been people who found out about him in the past, and let's just say things never ended well. Once everything was said and done, they both apologized.

Oliver and Laurel were perfectly fine with Ray not being human. It didn't mattered to them at all. Oliver even said that Ray was still Ray and nothing changed. That made Ray feel good. Like a weight was taken off his shoulders. Laurel gave him a hug and thanked him for being able to trust her with a secret like this. She asked him a few questions about his powers. One being, "Who would win in a race? You or the Flash?"

Speaking of the Flash, Ray was currently flying over Central City, making his way to S.T.A.R. Labs. It took very little time flying from Metropolis to Central City. Ray figured it was safe for him to fly around Central City because after a year or two dealing with metahumans, people might not be too bothered with a man flying in the sky. They're surely used to the strange and the impossible by now. However, there were a handful of citizens who took notice of him and gazed up at him. He could hear them with his super hearing.

"Look! Up in the sky!"

"It's a bird!"

"It's a plane!"

"Nah, it's just some meta. Nothing new. If he causes trouble, the Flash can handle him."

Ray chuckled and continued his journey to S.T.A.R. labs. Once he landed in front of the building, he briskly walked inside. It actually unsettled him that he was able to do that. Ray knew not to many people came to S.T.A.R. Labs, but the place should still have security. A bad guy could waltz right in and kill them before they even blinked. But that's a conversation to have with Team Flash for another time. Now, he had to tell them the truth about himself.

Once at the cortex, the alien scientist saw Cisco at the computers and a man who looked very much like Harrison Wells writing equations on a clear board. He knocked on the wall to get their attention. Once Cisco looked up, Ray smiled at him. With a wave he said, "Hi, Cisco! It's me!"

"HOLY SHIT!" Seeing Ray Palmer very much alive freaked the hell out of Cisco. He leaned back in his chair and ended up falling over. Ray winced, but the other guy rolled his eyes, muttering, "Nice, Ramon."

"Ray!? You're ALIVE!?" exclaimed Cisco, standing up. "I was there for your _funeral_!"

Ray gave him a weak smile. "Yeah, I need to explain that, plus some other things." Ray looked at the other person in the room. "Looks like I need to catch up on things here too. I know you're not Harrison Wells because he was murdered years ago by a time traveling lunatic. And you can't be the murdering lunatic because he was erased from existence. So, who are you?"

"The Dr. Harrison Wells from another Earth. I've come to this Earth to help the Flash stop a murdering speedster called Zoom."

Ray nodded. "Okay. So alternate universes are a real thing and you're from one of those universes. That's pretty cool. And I'm sure Team Flash is happy for your assistance."

"More like they assist me."

"I don't think so, _Harry_ ," said Cisco, glaring at the Dr. Wells from another Earth. He turned to Ray. "I'm actually not happy he's here, but don't really have a choice. We need to bring this Zoom guy down like a-sap. And are you wearing colored contact lenses? You're eyes look so blue."

Ray smiled and shook his head. When he left Ivy Town and moved to Star City, he started wearing brown contacts because they helped him blend in more. His real eye color was too beautiful and distracting. When he showed Team Arrow his real eyes, Felicity, Laurel, and Thea surrounded him and gazed into his eyes, commenting on how beautiful they were and couldn't look away.

Caitlin, and another man who Ray had never seen before, entered the room. Caitlin started to ask what was going on because she heard shouting, but stopped when she saw Ray Palmer, very much alive.

"Ray?" whispered Caitlin, surprised to see him. "You're here? How-?" She stopped and quickly stood face to face with him, staring straight into his brilliant blue eyes. "Oh my god. Your eyes are so blue."

Ray grinned. "I should be used to this."

But Caitlin just continued to gaze into his eyes, mesmerized by them. The other guy didn't like that Caitlin was giving Ray so much attention and waved his hand between them.

"Okay, stop gazing lustfully into his unearthly blue eyes." He was clearly jealous.

Caitlin blushed. "What? I'm not gazing lustfully!"

"Sure you're not," said Harry, rolling his eyes.

"Leave her alone, Harry," said Cisco.

Ray decided to step in and try to defuse the situation before they all started yelling and arguing. "So you go by Harry?"

"Ramon started calling me Harry because apparently calling me Dr. Wells made him think of the murderer, now all these other idiots call me that."

"You don't like being called Harry." Ray chose to ignore the fact he called Cisco and the rest of Team Flash idiots because he was trying to prevent a fight, not start one. "Do you prefer to be called Harrison?"

"I prefer Dr. Wells because I am a man of science and should be recognized for my brilliance."

"I understand. I'm in a similar boat as you. I earned my doctorates and don't really like it when people call me mister instead of doctor." He walked up to the scientist from a different Earth. Once close enough, he held out his hand to shack Harry's. "It's very nice to meet you, Dr. Wells. My name is Dr. Ray Palmer." A big smile was on his face.

But Harry chose to ignore his offered hand and went back to working on equation on the board. Ray frowned.

"Yeah, this Wells might not be evil like the other guy, but he's a total dick," informed Cisco.

"Right," murmured Ray. He then turned his attention to Caitlin and her friend. He strolled back over. "Don't worry. I know you weren't ogling at me with lust or anything like that. People just like my eyes." He looked at her friend, giving him a friendly smile. "And who are you?"

"Jay Garrick. I'm from the same Earth as Wells." Jay placed his hand on Ray's shoulder. "It's nice to see this world has a Superman in it."

Ray's face immediately fell as he stared at Jay with shocked eyes blown wide. "How do you know that name!? _I'm_ not suppose to know that name, but Garth and- no! No, never mind." He couldn't talk about that. Not yet. But how did this Jay guy know about the Superman thing?

Cisco and Caitlin looked at each other. They were both puzzled about what was happening. Caitlin was the one to speak up. "Uh Jay, you must be confusing him with someone else. This is Ray and he's a vigilante known as the Atom. There's no one on this Earth calling himself Superman."

"My mistake. It's just he looks so much like Superman, a hero in Metropolis. There's really no Superman here? What about a team of heroes called the Justice Society?"

"The Justice Society? Man that sounds like an awesome name for a superhero team!" exclaimed Cisco, grinning ear to ear.

Ray shook his head side to side. "No, there's no Justice Society." The name did sound familiar. There might have been a team during World War II that called themselves that, but it was unclear. Some people believe they were real, others didn't. Ray was not sure on the matter. "And I'm not Superman," he added. "But I guess I could have been." He unzipped his jacket to reveal the t-shirt with the S-Shield on it.

"Whoa! Nice logo, Ray," said Cisco. "But it doesn't exactly scream "Atom" don't you think?"

"That's because it's not for my Atom persona." Ray took in a deep breath. "I feel like I can trust you and Caitlin with this. I don't know Dr. Wells and Jay though, so can you guys vouch for them to keep a secret?"

"Well Harry might be a dick, but he's not a blabber mouth," said Cisco. "Even if he could leave S.T.A.R. Labs, I doubt he'd tell anyone whatever secret you wanna tell us."

"And I trust Jay," added Caitlin. "You can speak openly in front of him."

"Okay, great!" Ray beamed and clapped his hands together, rubbing them. "I was hoping to say this with Barry present too, but I guess he had work today."

"Yeah, he's at work in his police crime lab," said Cisco. He barely finished the sentence before a whooshing sound was heard and a blur with lightning ran around the room. "Or at least he should be at work. Barry, what are you doing here?"

"I had a USB drive containing crime scene stats and I can't find it at the station." Barry kept looking around. He even sped out of the room to look around in other rooms. He was soon back in the cortex. "So, I'm praying that it might be here, which it's not."

Ray was looking at Barry's face and was once again reminded of his friend who loved ABBA. But he couldn't think about that now. The Kryptonian opened his mouth to say "Hi!" but then closed it when he realized what Barry said. "Wait a minute. You brought your work to S.T.A.R. Labs? You shouldn't bring your work home, so why bring it here? Police work is the type of work you aren't allowed to take home with you, and for good reason. It could get lost or stolen. And you did something worse. You brought it to a place that I bet gets attacked by metahumans and other whack-jobs a lot. And now you lost it. How could you do something so reckless and irresponsible?" Ray's eyes went wide once he realized what he said and he covered his mouth with his right hand.

Barry had a look of shock and embarrassment on his face. Cisco, Caitlin, and Jay just stared at him, not knowing what to say in this situation. Harry put down the marker he was using and turned to Ray. "Exactly! Thank you! Finally, someone on this Earth with common sense! Between his tardiness, misplacing evidence, and his general idiot nature, I'm surprised Allen wasn't fired years ago!"

This didn't help. It just made Barry feel more embarrassed. He started to blush a deep red. Poor guy looked absolutely miserable. Thankfully Cisco came to his defense. "Shut up, Harry! Just ignore him, Barry. We'll help find your USB drive."

"I'll help too," said Ray. "And I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

Barry finally noticed that Ray was there and not dead. "Ray, you're alive? And since when do you have blue eyes?"

"Long story. I'd tell you, but you have to get to work."

"He's already late," said Dr. Wells. "Just tell him what you wanted to tell Snow and Ramon."

"Tell me what?" asked Barry.

"That I'm not human," said Ray. "You can tell Iris and her father what I'm about to tell you. I trust them too."

* * *

To say that what Ray told them was mind blowing would be an understatement. Barry, Cisco, and Caitlin were beyond blown away by what Ray was telling them. Hearing about the Fortress, all of Ray's different powers, and his adventures back home. Turns out he had to deal with some pretty bad metas, which really surprised them. They had no clue about metahumans (AKA meteor freaks) being a thing before the particle accelerator. Cisco really wanted to see the Fortress of Solitude and Caitlin wanted to study the crystals it was made of. Barry wanted to race against Ray someday. Harry and Jay chose to stay out of the conversation.

"We are going to Ferris Air Testing Facility," said Cisco. His eyes were lit up like a child on Christmas morning. "I have gotta see these powers in action!"

"And I would like to run some tests," said Caitlin.

"I'm glad you guys are cool with this," smiled Ray. "Small part of me was worried you'd freak out."

"You're our friend, Ray," said Barry. "We wouldn't hate you for being an alien from another planet. You don't hate me for being a meta."

"And considering what metas did to you in the past, it's a good thing," said Cisco. "Didn't you say one of those crazy meteor freaks was your girlfriend?"

Ray made a face. "Yeah. She was great until she wanted to kill me and Lana. I'm glad she's locked up." He almost shuddered at the thought of his ex. It was during his third year of high school and she had been his very first girlfriend. Everything had been perfect until she became obsessed with Ray and was somehow convinced he was going to dump her to be with Lana.

"I'm glad you trust us," said Caitlin, smiling. "We'll keep your secret safe."

"And I promise Iris won't write about this on her blog or for her paper," added Barry.

"Thanks, guys! Oh!" Ray zoomed out of the room at superspeed. Everyone noticed he didn't have lightning spark off him like when Barry ran. Soon he was back and handed Barry the USB drive. "This was in a drawer in the next room."

"How did-?"

"X-Ray vision."

"So cool," whispered Cisco.

"You better get going," said Ray. "You are _really_ late for work."

Barry glanced at the clock. "Oh crap! Captain Singh is going to kill me!" With a whoosh, Barry disappeared, leaving yellow lightning in his wake.

Cisco hopped out of his chair. "As for the rest of us, a trip to the Ferris Air Testing Facility is in order. I wanna see everything you can do, Ray."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the Easter Eggs in this. And I hope I did right be everyone's characters. Did I capture Harry's dickness right? (Is that even a word? Dickness? Oh well.)
> 
> I have good news. Ray will be meeting Len and the Legends soon. Hope you all enjoyed reading this chapter. Please leave me a review so I know if I should bother to continue.
> 
> P.S. The end note I put I my first chapter keeps popping up in the other chapters. How do I make that stop?

**Author's Note:**

> Is it just me or are female Kryptonian names confusing? When it comes to male Kryptonian names, it's very straight forward. You have the first name and the last name and they're connected with a hyphen. Examples: Kal-El, Jor-El, Kon-El, Dru-Zod, Lor-Zod, Dev-Em, Jax-Ur. Simple, right? Then you have female Kryptonian names and for some reason the rules are always changing! At first it was simple. The female had a first name and their last name was their father's full name. Examples: Kara Zor-El, Lara Lor-Van, Alura In-Ze, Asha Del-Nar, Thara Ak-Var. Kara's father was Zor-El so her name is Kara Zor-El. Alura's father was In-Ze so she is Alura In-Ze. And when they got married they dropped their father's name and when by their first name. That seems simple to me. Yet they change the rules a lot. In some versions, Superman's birth mother is known as Lara-El instead of just being Lara. And Supergirl's mother is known as Alura Zor-El instead of being just Alura. Now most Earth women take their husband's surname when they marry them, so I guess it would make sense for Kryptonian women to do the same. But they should keep their continuity the same! Should married Kryptonian women just use their first name, take their husband's surname, or take their husband's full name? Don't make it confusing! Then we have Kryptonian women who don't have proper names. Women like Lesla-Lar, Car-Vex, Jayna-Zod, Kol-Da. Why don't they have proper names? Non of them have their father's first name as part of their name. Their names are like the men's. Why? A show on Syfy called Krypton, there is a character named Nyssa-Vex and she's the daughter of Daron-Vex. I don't understand why her name's not Nyssa Daron-Vex. What do you all think about this?
> 
> For Ray's twin brother's Kryptonian name, I was inspired by the old Superman: The Animated Series cartoon. Superman's maternal grandfather was called Sul-Van instead of Lor-Van for some reason. I took the "Sul" part and created the name Sul-El. I ended up finding out two days later there was a character called Sul-El in the comics.
> 
> Don't worry. Lar Gand is Mon-El. In the comics, Lar Gand is his real name, but he gets amnesia and Superman renames him Mon-El until he remembers his name. I went to dcDOTwikiaDOTcom/wiki/DC_Comics_Database (replace the DOT with actual periods to go to this site) for info on Lar Gand/Mon-El.
> 
> So what did you think of this first chapter? Please be honest and tell me if I need to work on anything or if I made any mistakes.


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